In one night, more than 1,600 refugees arrive in Italy

Italian authorities brought 1,650 predominantly African and Middle Eastern migrants ashore before dawn on Saturday, depositing them in overcrowded shelters. A coast guard ship took 584 people aboard from two stranded migrant vessels, while two smaller coast guard motor boats took on 379. An additional 200 people were picked up off the coast of Sicily, while the air force was flying migrants out of an overcrowded shelter on the island of Lampedusa. More than 17,000 migrants have arrived in Italy so far this year, compared to 6,000 in the same period last year. Meloni has promised to increase deportations and stop NGO vessels from ferrying migrants to Italian ports, but the number of migrants making the journey has increased, prompting her to announce tougher jail sentences for human smugglers and their accomplices.